Mundane

There is an exaggerated beauty to be found in all corners of the world, some seek this in a literal sense and find themselves surrounded by things all would generally consider pleasing to the eye. I find a sickening level of mundane to coincide with these typical pleasurable trends, what many may see as the most ideal situation with which to be in- in regards to having someone for themselves or simply being in a location of immense and obvious beauty I find a lazy set of eyes that fails to see the beauty within the immense impossibilities of life- or the intense emotional weight of a pile of what many my simply consider junk. A grey afternoon on the back porch of my father’s house finds a panoramic view of several neighbors houses in various states of decay, some stare back at me with the intent of having me look away whilst the church in the corner of my eye reminds me of a strange section of the human brain. The fence is worn well and only a few trees are around, the large hunk of iron that was once a very usable trampoline takes up a large circular section of the well-kept grass. I do not fail to see the beauty in grandeur, what people generally find pleasurable to the eye- it does not surprise me and I do not necessarily blame anyone for viewing it as such. In fact, I would say it is almost necessary to understand why all find these palatable things pleasurable to the sight, for it allows one to further investigate the nature of beauty itself and how the grand can be found in all corners of life- in all people- in all things, to allow one to become more capable of portraying the mundane in exciting ways. One simply has to see the history, the function, the oddity, the total emotional weight of any individual scene to understand that there is much more than instinct to guide appreciation.

These appreciations of the everyday are often what leads me to such bland statements as “Everyone can create art.” And “There is beauty in everything.” They are both so damn cliché that you’d imagine the words coming out of some self-help coach who is desperately trying to scrape the bottom of your wallet whilst spouting non substantive smoke. And I understand that the phrase is already flawed, it is already wrong- Not everyone can create art, and there isn’t necessarily beauty in everything- at least not intentionally. For there are some people who will never see the art they have created, and thus- to them they cannot ever create art- Even if in actuality they have created something that others have viewed as art, it doesn’t mean a whole lot to them until they see it themselves. And there are some scenes with which beauty is simply the last thing that could be said to describe them properly, however- there is value to be found within everything and within that value lay something special- maybe it can’t be called beauty- but it is grand. On the surface, I am ashamed of a lot of what I do- for I understand how others around me will perceive it, I know the flaws in who I am and I understand how other people see myself and what I am surrounded by. It is not the sum of my flaws however that drives me to create and learn, but it is the grand nature of that which I view which drives me. I feel that it is important whenever you finally see that grand total in something others cannot- that you display it in whatever way you can, you approach it as if you are arguing for that particular things beauty- you try to convince them that what you have seen within it is beautiful, just so that they too could have a chance to see what you see- if only for a moment, they would be granted with that feeling you too held in your heart for something that isn’t so obviously valuable.

I don’t know what it is about this simple mission that seems so utterly gratifying to me, but I hope that you too can see it or at least sympathize with it. Imagine with me for a second a drink coaster with a cup of coffee on it- only a quarter of the way full surrounded by dusty pictures and a pair of headphones, can that simple arrangement of objects tell a profound story- could they imply something so deeply painful or emotionally moving? I would argue that it is irrelevant, the pictures could be of anything, the headphones could be in any state of repair, the coffee could have any manner of unsightly seems upon it- regardless of the actual story that these items could tell on their own or together, there is a story there worth knowing. Is it the story that is not true, it is the story that defies the actual, just as the composition of the objects naturally says something- so to simply does the act the objects existence. No matter how much tinkering and moving and framing I did, the sum total of the objects grandeur would be the same- the only thing that changes is how others who do not understand that grandeur sympathize with that view. This is where the eyes of the artist, the object empathizer, become very important- for it is the job of one who sees the grand total of grandeur within anything to display it to those who cannot see it- to show a deep beauty within something which is not so obvious on the surface. I believe this is extremely important, and it breaks down into the following concept which I think will be more or less easy to understand- one must learn to make what is not so obviously grand, shine beyond perception- in order to take what is obviously grand and display it in a light which makes it excel exponentially in the eyes of one witnessing it.

That is how masterpieces are made, that is how something so infinitely beautiful comes into existence- somebody who understands the grandeur of the mundane, and can display it to those who do not- takes their eyes to somewhere already so obviously grand… The effect can be displayed by the following, an artist with the ability to make a cup look as beautiful as that which is already obviously beautiful- should then be able to make the appropriate steps to find an even deeper beauty in that which already so many appreciate as beautiful to some lesser extent. It is this ability that I see far too often neglected, often times one does not consider the function of an object- but rather considers their base instincts of design – is it pleasurable at face value- without further investigation – did the person trying to sell this item to me paint it gold properly? It shouldn’t have to be this way, and I’d encourage anyone to take the most abrasive thing that they can find, whether it be a plate of leftover food, or an empty corner a house- a broken bottle on a street corner- . Display it in a way which conveys a value that is there beyond what simply the eye can see- and practice that as often as able, try to see what others cannot see in every object around you.